An old Chinese proverb says the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is today.
Most of us can look back on life 10 or 20 years ago and wish we had done some things differently. And while we are wise to learn from our mistakes, it’s also one of Satan’s favorite tactics to make us waste time fretting over things we can’t change. God doesn’t want us to spend time groveling and moaning over past failures.
Remember the words of Nehemiah that, “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” Satan would like nothing better than for you to miss even more opportunities to serve God, because you’re spending time focusing on past failures.
The way to enjoy good fruit 20 years from now is not to mope over your barren fields today, but rather to go out right now and start planting some seeds and redeeming the time.
Rick Grubbs is best known as the host of “Redeeming the Time,” a one-minute radio program featured on hundreds of radio outlets around the world. He has spoken thousands of times on Biblical time management in all 50 states and 26 other countries. He is the author of the book “Morning Momentum: God’s plan for launching an unstoppable day”. He and his wife Carrie live in Salisbury NC with several of their 12 children.
